Religion
.]] In most of the shown parts of the world of ''One Piece'', there are no apparent signs of religion, and no god-like beings have been introduced as of yet. However, in some areas, e.g. Skypiea, a strong religious sentiment is common. Also, many minor religious references are scattered across the series. God of Skypiea In Skypiea, the title of "God" refers to the ruling body of the sky islands. God is generally looked at as a governing class of sorts. However, other than the title itself, the position of God holds no religious or divine overtones, being a regular physical being who is neither all-powerful nor perfect. The first known man to hold this position was the unnamed God of Skypiea, who governed four hundred years prior to the current storyline, and Gan Fall was the previous God eight years prior, before Enel took over. Enel took this title too seriously, matching some of the "all powerful" and "omniscient" traits prior to his defeat by Luffy, and naming most of his lightning-based attacks after thunder gods of various religion. After Enel was gone, Gan Fall reclaimed the title. "Gods" of Shandora Shandians (at the times when they lived on Jaya) worshipped giant pythons (e.g. Kashigami). They even made human sacrifices to them. This practice ceased when Montblanc Noland and his crew arrived at Jaya and cured the tribe of Tree Fever. Creators of World Government The "Creators" of the World Government are supposed to be considered as Gods by everyone. The descendants of these "Creators", the World Nobles, also known as the Celestial Dragons, are supposed to be treated as Messiahs. World Nobles shoot on sight anyone found to be disrespecting them, and those escaping that are captured by a marine Admiral. Even the capital of the World Government, where the World Nobles live, is called the "Holy Land" Mariejois. Through the political influence they have with the World Government, they can order the creation of a bridge to connect to every island for no other reason than simply they wanted to, as well as make any commoner (including children) into a slave of theirs right off the street. "Gods" of Alabasta In Alabasta, the title "God" refers to the strongest guardians of the royal family. Pell and Chaka (the two head guards under Igaram of the Alabasta Kingdom) often refer to themselves as the "Guardian Gods" of Alabasta and the royal family. Also, their Zoan-type Devil Fruit transformations (a falcon and jackal respectively) resemble the two Egyptian gods Ra and Anubis, the two strongest gods in the Egyptian pantheon. The Satanic Cult of Namakura Island The satanic cult indicates that there might be a religious belief in the Devil in the One Piece world. The cultists on the island were trying to summon Satan, another name for the Devil, but instead ended up 'summoning' Brook. Fairies of Dressrosa On the island of Dressrosa, legends of Fairies are prominent in their lore and have been revered as Deities by the people for as long as they can remember. Many attribute certain thefts committed on the island to be the work of the Fairies, but because of their status they let them do as they please, however it is unknown if fairies are the ones actually responsible for the thefts. Ancient Weapons There are 3 ancient and powerful weapons in the One Piece world capable of destroying the world. Neptune claims that they were so powerful, that each of them was given the name of the gods, namely Pluton, Poseidon, and Uranus. God Complex and Fanaticism Throughout the series, some of the antagonists have shown signs of having a God complex, which is sometimes supported by the fanaticism of their followers. This leads them to believe that they are superior to everyone and thus are privileged to do so. Those who are afflicted by this in the series include: *Arlong and the Arlong Pirates *Wapol *Enel *Spandam *World Nobles *Hody Jones and the New Fishman Pirates Other mentions of God and religion * Early in the series, when the Straw Hats first stepped on the Island of Rare Animals, a small man named Gaimon attempted to scare them away by acting as the island's protective god. * In Chapter 157, Vivi violently prevents Luffy, Zoro and Sanji from catching a sea cat for food, because sea cats are sacred animals in Alabasta. * In the Arlong Park Arc, a cross marks Bell-mère's grave. * In the Whiskey Peak Arc, some of the Baroque Works mercenaries were dressed as nuns, one of them attacking with gas hidden in a Christian cross. Additionally the tombstones on the cactus mountains are cross shaped and at least one building in Whiskey Peak is shown to have crosses at the top of its towers. * Sanji has made many references to a possible God. In Loguetown, after lightning struck the scaffold Luffy was on and saved him from Buggy (calling the event "Divine Intervention" in the FUNimation dub), Sanji asked Zoro of his beliefs, though Zoro did not answer. During the Skypiea Arc, Zoro claimed he never prays to God and does not care whether one exists or not. After defeating Jabra of the CP9, Sanji mentions God again, saying "God creates food, and the Devil creates seasonings". * Buggy once claimed that if Luffy is the king of pirates, than that makes him the God of pirates * Jesus Burgess is named after the messiah of Christianity, Jesus Christ. ** On the original TV Broadcast of the FUNimation dub, Burgess' family name was changed to "G. Zess", keeping the phonic pronunciation, but changing the actual spelling. * At one point, Conis questions whether or not God exists, she then shouts out "Help us, God!!". However, it is more likely that she had been referring to Gan Fall. * There is also a reference to Davy Jones as a kind of god. When pirates have a Davy Back Fight they have to throw three coins into the ocean as an offering to Davy Jones, so that the 'sacred games' may begin. * When Franky explained to Usopp about the nature of the Klabautermann, he mentioned that if it sank with Usopp on board, it would not be able to go to Heaven. * There is also a reference to sea gods. Before entering the Florian Triangle, the crew picked up a barrel with the sign saying "Sea god's Houzen" (former treasure). It was actually a trap from Thriller Bark. However it seems that some sailors do put alcohol and reserves into floating barrels as an offering to the guardian deities of the sea. It seems to be customary that if someone picks one up, they may have the contents, though they will need to replace the 'offerings' and put the barrel back into the sea. After the Straw Hats picked up the floating barrel, Luffy prayed to 'God' for some tasty snacks, which Zoro finds ironic since his captain was the one who beat "God" in Skypiea. * Bartholomew Kuma has a bible (notable as it has "BIBLE" in full capitals) in his hands and always carries it with him. Gekko Moriah wears a cross around his neck, Mihawk also has weapons modeled after crucifixes, so one could say the Shichibukai might be a holy organization. However, the religious emblems they carry could simply be due to the fact that the privateers they are modeled after happened to be religious. On a separate note, while the country of Alabasta looks to be a Middle Eastern land, their graves are cross-shaped. The graves in Fishman Island's Sea Forest are also shaped like crosses. * At Sabaody Archipelago, Caribou addresses a god of some sort, stating "Oh God, forgive him!" and referring to a Marine soldier as "sinful". * The Flying Dutchman and its captain, Vander Decken, were said to be cursed by God for the captain's atrocious acts after suddenly going deranged and killing his crew one stormy night, as well as spitting at God. They were cursed, forever to sail the ocean, never able to make landfall. * The Royal Family of Ryugu Kingdom is based off of deities of the sea. King Neptune is named after the Roman God of water and the sea. Queen Otohime is named after the daughter of Ryujin, the Japanese God of the sea. And Princess Shirahoshi is the current form of the Ancient Weapon, Poseidon, which is named after the Greek God of the sea, earthquakes, and horses. * Many characters in the series have been referred as "demons" or "devils", such as Monkey D. Luffy, Roronoa Zoro, Nami, Gin, Nico Robin, Oars, Dias, Gol D. Roger, and Portgas D. Ace. * In episode 48 of the anime, the Liturgy of the Hours can be heard in Loguetown when Luffy sees the sign for the Gold Roger bar. * Two towns near Water 7, St. Poplar and San Faldo, both contain the word "saint" in their names ("san" means saint in Spanish and Italian), suggesting there is a belief in saints or angels in One Piece. * In Episode 509, Brook told the people of Namakura Island that "no god nor devil will reach out to those who do not fight for themselves!". During the timeskip, he also discovered one of his new abilities while praying and can channel the cold chill of the underworld to attack his opponents. * Hody Jones and his subordinates believe that they were chosen by the heavens to obliterate the human race and to change the entire culture of the Fishmen race when they got their hands on the Energy Steroids. Trivia * In Oda's 1993 one-shot God's Gift for the Future prior to One Piece, "God" appears as a comical old man trying to change the ways of a pickpocket. In the story God himself does not appear to be omnipotent, but possessed a Special Notebook and a pen with omnipotent capabilities, God's only revealed powers were omnipresence and knowledge on all current happenings. In another one-shot, Ikki Yako, a form of a god was shown with the Guardian Deity. Category:Society and Culture